A one-time Cloquet resident dubbed a “dangerous offender” was sentenced Jan. 22 to more than 16 years in prison for his role in an October 2012 stabbing.

Donald William Laquier Jackson, 26, received the 200-month sentence in State District Court in Duluth. Laquier Jackson pleaded guilty in December to aiding and abetting first-degree assault and aiding and abetting second-degree assault.

Laquier Jackson, who admitted to playing a role in the stabbing that nearly killed a 17-year-old girl, will need to serve at least two-thirds of that sentence — a little more than 11 years — before he’d be eligible for supervised release.

Judge John DeSanto cited the defendant’s extensive criminal history — including four convictions for violent crimes over a 10-year period — in deeming Laquier Jackson a “dangerous offender” and imposing the longer-than-guideline sentence.

As part of his plea, Laquier Jackson denied that he was the person who stabbed the girl, and said he didn’t know who did. However, he said he was present at the scene and allowed the assault to occur.

He allegedly told a probation officer during his pre-sentence investigation that he intended to assault someone that day.